Published 4:00 am, Friday, June 18, 2004

Photo: CHAE KIHN

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**FILE**Peter Dinklage appears in a scene in the 2002 film "The Station Agent," in this undated promotion photo. It was announced in Los Angeles that Dinklage received a Screen Actor Guild award lead actor nomination, on Thursday, Jan. 15, 2004(AP Photo/Jeremy Walker & Assoc. / Chae Kihn)
ALSo RAN: 03/01/2004 (3-Star) Peter Dinklage, nominated for a best-actor award by the Screen Actors Guild for &quo;The Station Agent,&quo; opted not to change his name. , AN UNDATED PHOTO less

**FILE**Peter Dinklage appears in a scene in the 2002 film "The Station Agent," in this undated promotion photo. It was announced in Los Angeles that Dinklage received a Screen Actor Guild award lead actor ... more

In the early years of railroads, the station agent was an integral part of a community. He hand-delivered the mail brought in by train, sold groceries at the depot and even cut the locals' hair.

Railroad lore like this is scattered throughout "The Station Agent," as touching and original a movie as you're likely to see this year. Its hero is a 4-foot-5-inch dwarf named Fin McBride, who is a repository of arcane information about the rails.

Fin (Peter Dinklage) moves into an old depot willed to him by a fellow train nut. But Fin is the opposite of a 19th century station agent. He's a loner who wants no contact with his neighbors. He takes solitary walks, waiting for trains to whiz by so he can clock them with his pocket watch. Decades of being the brunt of cruel jokes about his height have taught him to insulate himself from more hurt.

"The Station Agent" -- a remarkably assured first film from writer- director Tom McCarthy -- makes a case for Fin taking a giant leap back into life. Not much happens by conventional movie standards. Fin meets Olivia (Patricia Clarkson), an artist grieving over the accidental death of her young son. Joe (Bobby Cannavale), a chatty hot dog vendor, imposes himself upon the two. At first, his noisiness disturbs them. But they sense he's a good guy, for all his bluster. The trio's budding friendship illustrates the importance of being able to tell good people from bad.

McCarthy wrote the parts with these actors in mind, and his instincts proved right. His star had been stuck in supporting roles, most memorably in "Living in Oblivion," where he gives an impassioned speech about the unfairness of dwarfs always being cast in dream sequences. Dinklage, who has large, expressive eyes and a Darth Vader-deep voice, proves in "Station Agent" that he can carry a movie. He's particularly powerful in a scene where Fin, unable to control his anger at staring bar patrons, gets up on a stool and shouts for everyone to take a good look at him. Dinklage also can be sexy. When a woman in town becomes attracted to Fin, it doesn't seem weird or patronizing, because we see what she sees in him.

Clarkson, the reigning queen of the indies, conveys Olivia's incomprehensible loss in small ways, such as her distracted response to everyday situations. She meets Fin when she almost runs him over twice. Cannavale has the showy role, and he plays it big. His Joe is a life force, whether on the phone with his ailing father or spontaneously playing with neighborhood kids.

Apparently McCarthy, in his years as an actor, paid close attention to what goes on behind the camera. With an economy of shots, he captures the desolation of a town bypassed by progress. There are unexpected images that stay with you, like Joe's foot reaching out to the makeshift stool on which Fin's feet rest, while Fin defends his turf.

"Station Agent" has overtones of Carson McCullers. But McCarthy resists making his characters so weird that they lose their humanity. As Fin puts it, "It's really funny the way people see me and treat me because I'm actually just a very simple boring person." The movie shows us that Fin is much more than that while arguing for his right to be as boring as the next guy.

Advisory: Mildly suggestive sexual situations.

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